Staff Sgt. Philip Eaton is getting ready for a deployment to Afghanistan in the coming months, but first the staff of Courtesy Ford gave him a send-off Wednesday afternoon.

Eaton, a technician at the dealership who has been in the Army National Guard for nine years, said the 190th Military Police Company will be heading off to Afghanistan after a month spent at Fort Stewart for training.

Eaton said he was more concerned for the safety of the soldiers in his squad than for himself.

“My first priority is the soldiers under me,” he said. “Making sure your soldiers are safe always takes priority over my own safety.”

Eaton was joined by his young son Joshua during the send-off, which featured pizza and cake. Courtesy Ford service adviser Phil Trammell said Eaton is a “good-will oriented kind of guy,” and he would be missed at the dealership during his deployment.

“He’s one of the best workers we’ve got,” he said.

Eaton has worked as a service technician in the dealership’s Quick Lane service for the past two years.

He said it was likely he’d be able to come home to see his wife Nikki and their son for Christmas one last time before being sent off to Afghanistan. He also said he’d miss working at the dealership during his deployment.

“I will miss all my friends here,” he said.

Eaton was deployed during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He has also served at Fort McPherson and Fort Gillem in metro Atlanta.